2014 May Bookmarks

*Bookmarks is an online book club hosted at Creative2xmom. Here we discuss the books we've read in the past month as well as the suggested reading. Our suggested reading for May was The Values Driven Child by Larry Shealy.

These are the books I read this month:

The Last Bride by Beverly Lewis-- See my review here.

Hope Rising by Scott Todd-- See my review here.

Seasons of Tomorrow by Cindy Woodsmall-- See my review here.

Rhinestone Jesus by Kristen Welch--  Kristen Welch has been a long time blogger, writing at We Are THAT Family for years.  And I've been a long time reader.  So I was excited to see this book come out.  My mommy blessed me with a copy for Mother's Day and I couldn't wait to get started.  Welch shares her story of being a typical mom called to start a maternity house all the way over in Africa.  She's quite frank about her own short comings and inexperience, and is quick to give all the glory to our Heavenly Father.  Her testimony is a challenge to all of us as we "un-pin" our safe faith and dare to dream bigger than ourselves.  This book is more than a biography.  It is filled with insight and testimony that will challenge all of us as we wonder, "What could saying yes to God really mean for our lives?"  I walked away from this one troubled, contemplative, and inspired.  Are you ready?

Book I read with the kids this month:

Mrs. Piggle-Wiggle by Betty MacDonald--  Hilarious... although I think it was funnier for my husband and I than it was for the kids.  The chapters illustrate Mrs. Piggle Wiggles unusual cures for common children misbehaviors.  They are goofy, outrageous, silly, and so far from reality.  It was a little over my kids' heads, but for me... I read the next one just for myself.

A Bear Called Paddington by Michael Bond--  You think you know Paddington?  So did I.  You think he's only for kids?  Think again.  My kids love the outrageous hijinks of this little bear and it opened up set of vocabulary and ideas for us to discuss.  Very much a long the same lines as Amelia Bedelia.

Our suggested reading for May was The Values Driven Child by Larry Shealy--  This is was an interesting read and not quite what I expected.  Shealy comes out and speaks a lot like talking one on one with a fellow parent.  Although this book is only the first in a series, Shealy explores what it's like to coach children with purpose, building character.  Reminding us to get on the same level as our kids, connecting with consistency, and reconnecting... Shealy reminds us of a great place to start.  Not sure I'd read the entire series, this one did remind me of some great parenting techniques and worth a couple of dollars to jumpstart your purposefilled parenting.

So what are your bookmarks this month?

Tell us in the comments about the books you're chewing on. Or link up a review from your own blog. Let's share the books we're finding, good and bad. And give us your thoughts on The Values Driven Child by Larry Shealy.

And join us for our next bookmarks post coming June 27th as we discuss Culture of Honor by Danny Silk.

*Linked to these Parties

Our Summer 2014 Bucket List

Make homemade lemonade

Visit the acquatic center

Play in the wading pool

Stay up and star gaze

Have a water fight

Play with water balloons

Make homemade ice cream

Bake blackberry cobbler

Go on a family bike ride

Go to the lake

Make stick puppets

Get snow cones

Have root beer floats

Build your own pizza night

Go to the beach

Fly a kite

Create an obstacle course

Feed the ducks

Have a car wash day

Roast marshmallows

Make smores

Finish bird feeders

Make popsicles

Use the slip n slide

Scrapbook summer photos

Make fairy houses

Pick blackberries

Visit Grandma's

Read The Rescuers

Watch the fireworks

Make a big chocolate cake for Daddy

Read Ragweed

Take swim lessons

Create some yard art

Read Bednobs and Broomsticks

Make sand castles

Try glow in the dark bubbles

Go to a dollar movie

Check out the Farmer's Market

Do fingerprint art

Read for the library challenge

Make campfire cones

Go to VBS

Read for B&N challenge

Play croquet

Go to the butterfly house

Read for baseball challenge

Finish bird feeders

Make a heart map

Make sponge bombs

Create ice cream pops
SWIM!
Bake cookies
Go to some dollar movies
Make homemade ice cream
Keep a summer journal

Seasons of Tomorrow {Review}

Book Four of Woosmall's Amish Vines and Orchards series opens to the reader finding out what's become of Rhoda and Samuel.  After a harsh break up with Samuel's brother Jacob, Rhoda is coming to accept her gift of intuition and finding confidence in her future on the family farm.  But while Jacob is no longer on the farm, he stands between her and Samuel's happiness.  How long will they wait for his heart to heal before they can move forward?

And Jacob wonders too: when will his heart find a home to rest and let down its guard?  And so he returns to construction work.  Running from job to job and never staying in one place long enough to get attached.  Till one day he nearly runs over his future.

But a family tragedy calls Jacob home, forcing him to face Rhoda and Samuel.  Two lives hang in the balance while another family member feels pulled to the Englisher world.  What will happen to this new homestead as member's lives hang in the balance?  And others feel called to live outside the Amish ways?  Can they all pull together long enough to keep the farm afloat?  Or will the new King homestead become another failed venture?

While you can enjoy this book outside the series, it makes so much more sense if read it in order.  Book Three left us wondering what would become of Rhoda and Samuel's future and this book answers those questions.  Also we get a lot more insight into Jacob's personality.   While he's certainly not been neglected through out this series, this book brought to light aspects of his personality that I didn't realize existed.  It was nice to see his character develop and mature more through this book.

The end of the book did leave room for some questions, but ultimately book four tied up most of the loose ends nicely.  All the character's struggles and responses are real and pulled at the heart strings.  And it was very to see what finally becomes of these characters we've grown to love throughout the series. 

*Disclaimer: I received a free copy of this book for review.  All opinions are my own.

10 Goals this Week

Here's how I did last week:

Parenting:

• Start a new read aloud
• 2 karate, 1 baseball, 1 ballet, and 1 gymnastics
• Attend Spanish fiesta

Blogging:

• Upload a vlog
• Finish and review two books

Homemaking:

• Try one new recipe
• Work on MM party
• Pick up AC pass

Personal:

• Sleep 8.5 hrs/ night (4 nights)
• Workout 3-4 days/ one day of yoga 

These are my 10 Goals for the Week:

Parenting:

• 2 karate, 2 baseball, 1 ballet, and 1 gymnastics
• Plan an end of the school year fun day

Blogging:

• Finish Noah's birth video
• Pre-write 3 blogs
• Work on a DIY project

Homemaking:

• Try one new recipe
• Work in yard
• Work in kids' room

Personal:

• Sleep 8.5 hrs/night
• Workout 3-4 days/one day of yoga

What are Your Goals for the Week?

Weekend Links

Patriotic Dark Chocolate Cupcakes

Penny Tile

Garden Hose Wreath

Pillow Pool Float

Crab Salad on Tostadas

This Week:

What I Made:  I've been in a creative slump lately and not getting much done.  Blame it on end of the year laziness

What I'm Reading:  I'm reading Rhinestone Jesus by Kristen Welch.  It's actually really good and I've been posting a few quotes on Facebook.  Go check it out!  

What I'm Doing: Just relaxing with the hubby.  My in-laws visited this weekend and we went to the Strawberry Festival.  Yummy!

What I'm Watching: Not much... end of the year slump?

What I'm Enjoying:  Trader Joe's Salsa Verde... strawberries... fresh fruit season... being able to use my clothesline in this hot weather...

What are you up to?

Wiggly Eye Pictures

Hope Rising {Review}

Scott Todd, Vice President of Compassion International, lays out his vision for ending world property, through a three strike mission infiltrating: social means, business, and the church.  Though often thought to be too large a problem, Todd argues that ending extreme poverty is not only possible, but likely within our lifetime.  And we are invited to wage this war with Christ's help.  

Hope Rising is about the common man turning the tide in the fight against poverty by influencing government policy, using consumerism to affect businesses and helping the local church to understand it's own power.  But he also looks at the core of how poverty must first be addressed:

"To be sure, property is a deprivation of basic human needs, but it is also a lie. A lie whispered in the ears of those close to his breath-- 'You can't. Just give up.' And this is the most dehumanizing effect of all. To conquer extreme poverty, we have to dispel that lie with the truth."

And even deeper, the core of why the church has lacked effectiveness to this point:

"Individuals, communities, and whole nations can be trapped by the tyranny of their low expectations of themselves, their futures, and even of God."

Ultimately the take away from the book, for me, was banishing those low expectations.  Knowing that my own expectations have been far from reality.  Where am I at in trusting the Lord to far exceed my expectations?  And how am I inspiring others to the same?

I'll leave you with one last startling thought:

"...if American Christians (not all of them, just the 138 million who attend church at least twice per month) were to tithe (give 10 percent), it would result in two hundred and fifty billion dollars in philanthropy. Over eight times the giving power (of Forbes 400 giving away 50% of their wealth) from the rest of us simply by obeying one of God's biblical principles of generosity."

It's time for Hope to Rise, and it's time for us to turn up our expecters.  What are you expecting from the Lord?

*Disclaimer: I received a free copy of this book for my honest review.  All opinions are my own.

Saving Money by Using Cloth

This going green journey has been and continues to be a step by step process.  Some days I feel like I still have so far to go.  But when I sit back and look, I realize we have taken several steps in saving the environment and saving a little green in our wallet as well.  These are just a few ways we're saving money by not using disposables:

Dish clothes and microfiber clothes--For the most part, I use microfiber and other clothes in my kitchen and cleaning.  They last a long time and are easily washed with the rest of our laundry.

Paper towels--I can't remember the last time I bought paper towels.  We keep lots of hand towels hanging in our kitchen and bathroom and make sure to rotate and wash them frequently.  I love the feeling of cloth and don't get the sinking feeling in the pit of my stomach every time I throw away a paper towel.  For cleaning, I use my microfiber clothes.

Paper plates--Paper plates are easily converted to the dishes many of us already have in our cupboards.  The one exception for us is birthday parties.  Otherwise, we use our nice dishes day in and day out.

Napkins--For the most part, we don't use paper napkins either unless we have a few left over from birthdays.  We are slowly building a cloth napkin stash.  If you don't currently have the money to invest in nice napkins, consider cutting your own from material as you build your inventory.

Diapers--We have since switched to cloth diapering with our third child and realize that it saves us a ton of money.  The initial investment can be steep so check out your local craigslist site and sites like babysteals.com and babyhalfoff.com

Nursing pads--Initially these didn't work for me, but as my supply leveled out, I was able to use them.  They're soft and still reasonably thin.  And saved us a ton of money.

Changing mats--The changing mat that came with our diaper bag worked great in public places.  It was easily cleaned and always with me when I needed it.

Things I'd like to switch over, but haven't:

Baby wipes--Homemade baby wipes can be really inexpensive.  I've heard of several moms who've used the thin baby washcloths and throw them in when washing diapers.  Plus it's free of many unknown chemicals.

Sanitary napkins--I hear great things about Mama cloth and as I'm trying to use less and less tampons, I'd like to invest in some.  With pads being a reoccurring cost every month, I can see how this would easily save us some money and less our exposure to harmful chemicals.

So those are just a couple of ideas to encourage us all.

How are you saving some green by using cloth?

10 Goals this Week

Here's how I did last week:

Parenting:

• Finish read aloud
• Plan Mays dates
• 1 softball game, 1 baseball game, 2 karate and 1 ballet lesson, 1 gymnastics lesson

Blogging:

• Upload a Vlog
• Finish Noah's birth story

Homemaking:

• Try 1 new recipe
• Work on birthday lanterns
• Plan something for school fiesta

Personal:

• Get 8.5 hrs sleep/night (4 nights)
• Workout 3-4 days/one day of yoga (2)

These are My 10 Goals for the Week:

Parenting:

• Start a new read aloud
• 2 karate, 1 baseball, 1 ballet, and 1 gymnastics
• Attend Spanish fiesta

Blogging:

• Upload a vlog
• Finish and review two books

Homemaking:

• Try one new recipe
• Work on MM party
• Pick up AC pass

Personal:

• Sleep 8.5 hrs/ night
• Workout 3-4 days/ one day of yoga

What are Your Goals for the Week?

Weekend Links

DIY Scrapbook Frame Tutorial

"Peanut" Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies (Nut Free)

Scrapbook Generation

Cranberry Feta Chicken Salad with Chutney Dressing

Scrappy Patchwork Pillow

This Week:

What I Made: I embellished some birthday goody bags and made a MM birthday sign for the front door.  Birthday stuff...  working ahead of time.

What I'm Reading:  I just finished the book for May's book club and I'm dragging my feet on a review book, but not sure when I'll get it done.  Ooops!

What I'm Doing: We're at a baseball game again this morning.  After this, I think we're going to go check out our Farmer's Market.  Haven't been there since it opened this season.

What I'm Watching: Watching my kid play... watching some 19 kids and counting... watching the blue jays in my backyard...

What I'm Enjoying:  Hanging my clothes on the clothes line... Our economics unit in history... Letting the kids stay up... finishing school early every day...

What are you up to?

Do It Yourself: Body Wash

One of my DIY projects for 2014 was to create my own body wash.  Having five of us in the house, any way I can cut cost is welcome.  And skipping baths, although fine with my kids, just isn't going to cut it for this Mama.  Body wash seems to be one of those things we go through quickly so if I can make my own, why not?

I found this recipe on pinterest (as well as a few others) and thought I'd give it a try.  Reading all the notes and making a few of my own adjustments, I came up with a plan that works for us.

Start with a cup of grated bar soap (love this almond bar) *(I used the whole bar)

1 Tbsp of liquid Glycerin (found in the first aid department) *(I ended up with 2 Tbsp)

8 c. water *(I ended up with 12 c)

 

Dissolve your grated soap in water on the stove top on med. heat)

This will happen very quickly.

Add Glycerin and combine.

   

Allow your soap to cool and sit over night.  I made mine after dinner and let sit until breakfast the next morning.

Mine was super thick and I whipped it with an immersion blender.

Store left over soap in an empty milk jug.

Some of the comments I read talked about this having a snotty consistency.  I found by adding a bit more glycerin and whipping it helped.  I also shake it before pumping.

Others commented that it didn't lather well.  I agree, but with a loafa, it lathers beautifully.

So that's what we're going with for now.  I love that it stretches and is basically the same thing.  I'm a little frustrated that it doesn't lather well, but I love my loafa so it all works out.

Have you tried making your own body wash or hand soap?

10 Goals This Week

Here's how I did last week:

Parenting:

• 2 baseball games, 1 softball game, 2 karate lessons, 1 ballet lesson, 1 gymnastics
• Start new read aloud

Blogging:

• Record 1-2 vlogs
• Complete on DIY project

Homemaking:

• Try 1 new recipe
• Work on birthday lanterns
• Finish invitations
• Work in yard

Personal:

• Get 8.5 hrs sleep/night (3 nights)
• Workout 4-5 days/ one day of yoga (2 days)

These are My 10 Goals for the Week:

Parenting:

• Finish read aloud
• Plan Mays dates
• 1 softball game, 1 baseball game, 2 karate and 1 ballet lesson, 1 gymnastics lesson

Blogging:

• Upload a Vlog
• Finish Noah's birth story

Homemaking:

• Try 1 new recipe
• Work on birthday lanterns
• Plan something for school fiesta

Personal:

• Get 8.5 hrs sleep/night
• Workout 3-4 days/one day of yoga

What are Your Goals for the Week?

Weekend Links

Lemon Blueberry Snack Cake

Paper Flowers Wall Art

Starbucks Inspired Maple Oat Scones

Flower Pot Box Card

How do you raise kids without all the clutter?

This Week:

What I Made: Oh, just working on birthday party stuff.  And playing in the kitchen.

What I'm Reading:  Going to start Kristen Welch's book Rhinestone Jesus and reading through a review book.

What I'm Doing: We're at my son's baseball game this morning.  This is our third game this week.  Probably going to go see a movie this weekend too.

What I'm Watching: Watching the kids play in the front yard and Lydia working on riding her bike.

What I'm Enjoying:  Cool weather... summer salads... hanging laundry... a baby sleeping without a paci...

What are you up to?

Disneyland Trivia

1.  As you enter Sleeping Beauty's castle from the drawbridge, look up to see the Disney family crest over the archway.

2. This drawbridge has only been lowered twice: once at the opening of the park and again in the 1980's when Fantasyland was refurbished.

2.  The dog holding the keys on The Pirates of the Carribean and the Carousel of Progress are both modeled after Walt Disney's dog.

3. Walt Disney kept a private apartment over the Main Street Fire House.  When the light was on in the window, it was a signal to the crew that Walt was onsite.  Today the light remains on in his honor.

4. Steve Martin's first job was in the Magic Shop on Main Street.

5. The organ in the Haunted Mansion is from the movie 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea.

6. Main Street is said to be modeled after Walt's boyhood hometown: Marceline (represented by one of the candy shops, Missouri and set in 1910.  The scent of vanilla is pumped into the air along Main Street and peppermint is pumped in during the holidays.

7. The floor to the entrance of Disneyland is red because Walt Disney wanted everyone to feel like a celebrity walking the red carpet.

8. Pay attention to the sound track running in Main Street.  You'll hear: a dentist drilling (near the dental office), a piano student who makes an obvious mistake, a man showering, a detective's dog barking, and more.  Ficticious names of the businesses are painted on the windows.

9. Disneyland's address is 1313 for M being the 13th letter of the alphabet (MM).

10. The Tiki Room was originally designed to be a restaurant.  That is why it is the only attraction with restrooms attached.

10 Goals this Week

Here's how I did last week:

Parenting:

• Finish read aloud
• 1 baseball, 1 softball, 2 karate, 1 ballet lesson

Blogging:

• Record 1-2 vlogs
• Finish review book

Homemaking:

• Try 1 new recipe
• Catch up on a DIY project
• Work on birthday details
• Work in yard

Personal:

• Get 8.5 hrs sleep/night ( 3 nights)
• Workout 4-5 days/one day of yoga (3 days)

These are My 10 Goals for the Week:

Parenting:

• 2 baseball games, 1 softball game, 2 karate lessons, 1 ballet lesson, 1 gymnastics
• Start new read aloud

Blogging:

• Record 1-2 vlogs
• Complete on DIY project

Homemaking:

• Try 1 new recipe
• Work on birthday lanterns
• Finish invitations
• Work in yard

Personal:

• Get 8.5 hrs sleep/night
• Workout 4-5 days/ one day of yoga

What are Your Goals for the Week?

Weekend Links

Superhero Birthday Party

Barbie Birthday Party

Knight 2nd Birthday Party

First Birthday Carnival Party

Space Themed Birthday Party

This Week:

What I Made:  I made a new DIY Body Wash and will go ahead and post that one next week.  I'm working on a few projects this weekend as well.  Nice to get back in the rhythm of creating.

What I'm Reading:  I'm reading a new Amish fiction book that I'll review next week as well.  It's in one of my favorite series.

What I'm Doing: We're at my son's baseball game this morning and I'm testing out my theory on snacks.  Yes, it out snack week.  Wish me luck!

What I'm Watching: Lately we've been watching The Little Couple and finishing up The Amazing Race.  Love watching that with the kids.

What I'm Enjoying:  I'm enjoying some lighter dinners and the breathing room that comes with the end of the school year.

What are you up to?

Along Came You {Review}

Along Came You is written from the mother's perspective as she explains what her life was like before and after becoming a parent.  For each "before" explanation, the mother is shown doing the activity by herself and "after" she is doing something with her daughter.  Before the house was quiet... After the house was filled with joyful noise...

This is a fun little book for parents and children to share together.  But I was also impressed by how easily this could adapt to an adoption scenario.  The story focuses more on the relationship than the process of having a baby so it's great for all parenting relationships.  

The illustrations are beautiful, the language is simple and rhythmic, and the story is sweet.  Wonderful for a child who needs a little mommy time.  The recommend age is 4-7 years, but I think it would be great to share with a younger child as well.

*Disclaimer: I received a free copy of this book from the publisher for my honest review.  All opinions are my own.